Two days before the launch of the groundbreaking health insurance exchange program, Californians are wondering whether Obamacare will work.

But it's already working. And so far, it's going better than expected.

When the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in 2010, more than 7 million Californians -- nearly 20 percent -- had no health insurance. More than 30 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds were uninsured.

Today, thanks to Obamacare, more than 1 million formerly uninsured Californians have coverage, 400,000 of them younger than 26 and newly entitled to coverage under their parents' plans. People can't be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions. Medical costs are growing at the slowest rate in more than a decade, and premium costs for the state health insurance exchange, while the 10th highest in the country, are significantly lower than anticipated.

President Barack Obama delivers a statement on the Affordable Care Act at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose, Calif. on June 7, 2013. (Gary Reyes, Bay Area News Group)

Funny, Sen. Ted Cruz didn't mention any of this in his 21-hour, 19-minute harangue last week.

That said, we're expecting plenty of problems Tuesday when the massive new system rolls out nationwide. Medicare got off to a very rocky start in 1965, as the 19 million Americans over 65 in need of health care coverage began navigating the system. Of course today, surveys show Americans with this government health insurance are far more satisfied than those with private insurance. Obamacare is likely to follow the same path.

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Its success will hinge on two factors: how many people sign up for the health exchanges and how efficiently the medical system deals with the change in how care is provided to low-income people. For California counties, getting people enrolled is critical because the federal government is covering that cost -- and every local dollar saved can go into the health care system. In addition, all health insurance programs work best if the pool of participants is broad, spreading the risk and the cost. If only a small number of the sickest people enroll in California, it could wind up raising costs for all.

Cruz and his followers act as if the current system works -- and it does for the wealthy and the dwindling number of workers who have comprehensive, affordable insurance through work. But for the 48 million Americans who don't have insurance, or roughly 15 percent of the population, the system has been a disaster. Even for families with some savings, bankruptcy is just a cancer diagnosis away.

That affects all Americans. Hospitals are legally obligated to care for people who show up in an emergency situation without insurance or sufficient savings to pay. The rest of us cover that cost -- about $1,000 a year for each American family -- through higher insurance rates or taxes for public hospitals. But if people have insurance, not only will emergency care be covered, but it will be needed less often as people receive routine care.

Americans who now have insurance through work or Medicare have no need of Obamacare. It's for those who don't have insurance. But it is a new safety net for workers who lose their jobs and find themselves without coverage, or who are stuck in bad jobs they can't leave because they will lose their benefits. With the exchanges, they will be able to get coverage even if they have existing medical conditions. This will actually help the economy by keeping families stable and allowing people the freedom to strike out on their own and start businesses.

Only about 5-10 percent of Californians at any given time need coverage for major health problems. But the more Californians buy into the pool, the more resources will be available for those times.

The Affordable Care Act is not the precise reform we would have designed. But Obama got what he could, and it is a plan that can work. Have patience with the early glitches, and check back a year from now. We are optimistic.